HELCOM Conference shows consensus on key building blocks for effective implementation of the Baltic recovery plan

Helsinki, 4 March (HELCOM Information Service) – Senior Government Officials, representatives of science and business communities and various organizations from all around the Baltic Sea took part in the Fourth Stakeholder Conference on the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan which was held on 3 March in Helsinki to discuss political, economic and scientific pre-requisites for timely and successfully achieving a healthy Baltic Sea. Keynote speakers at the opening plenary included Ms. Paula Lehtomäki, Minister of the Environment of Finland, Mr. Yuri Trutnev, Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation, Ms. Åsa-Britt Karlsson, State Secretary, Ministry of the Environment of Sweden, as well as Mr. Peter Gammeltoft, representative of the European Commission.

“Participants were unanimous in that the implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan to drastically reduce pollution to the marine environment and restore its good ecological status by 2021 is an initiative of the highest political importance for the region,” said Ms. Anne Christine Brusendorff, HELCOM’s Executive Secretary, commenting on the outcome. “There was also consensus that the success of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan will largely depend on how all the coastal countries and involved stakeholders, including international financial institutions (IFIs), can co-operate to achieve the goal of a healthy Baltic Sea environment.”

The Conference programme consisted of three thematic sessions focusing on the new HELCOM scientific assessments which provide a baseline for implementing the measures of the plan, economic perspective of the protection of the Baltic Sea, as well as issues of regional co-operation in strengthening the knowledge base for cost-efficient implementation of the plan. The sessions were followed by a general roundtable discussion on how to ensure good linkages between science and decision-making, enhanced leadership and more efficient use of the financial instruments in order to guarantee successful implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan.

The new thematic assessments on eutrophication and biodiversity, which were launched at the Conference, are based on the latest scientific information available and will contribute to the future holistic assessment on the status of the Baltic Sea which will be used as a basis for evaluating the success of current measures and the identification of further priority actions. There was a common view that a good knowledge basis, grounded on thematic assessments of the marine environment, a solid understanding of the economic perspectives of protecting the marine environment, and regional co-operation for taking cost-effective measures are of utmost importance for putting the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan into practice, and these are the three essential building blocks for successfully implementing it.

The Conference recognised that financial resources are of essence for implementing the actions agreed upon in the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan, and that the financing priorities within the numerous EU and other funds (e.g. cohesion, structural, fisheries, agriculture, Baltic Sea Region Programme, Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership, research etc.) should be sufficiently oriented towards the implementation of the plan. However, it was noted that it is also up to the Baltic Sea countries to make use of these funds so that sufficient support is given to the priorities of the identified actions. Moreover, it was acknowledged that significant funding resources are available in the countries themselves. Despite the eagerness of IFIs and private foundations to support the implementation of the HELCOM action plan, the Conference recognised the need for establishing a mechanism to assist countries to prepare suitable project proposals. The Conference took note of a Technical Assistance Fund proposed by the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) and the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) designed to support this process.

In his opening statement the Chairman of HELCOM, Mr. Igor Maydanov stressed the importance of the political will in the implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan. This is especially important in order to reach and maintain a good ecological status of the Baltic marine environment despite the challenging slow down of the economy, Maydanov said. He also stressed the importance of the results of the scientific research and efficient communication between the scientific community and decision makers. This Conference is to be seen as an important stepping stone towards the HELCOM Ministerial Meeting to be held in 2010 in Moscow, Maydanov noted.

In his statement, the Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation, Mr. Yuri Trutnev underlined the importance of the Baltic Sea Action Plan as a strategic document for the improvement of the environmental situation in the Baltic Sea area, and that existing problems will be addressed through specific and targeted measures to be elaborated within the national action programme for implementation of the plan in Russia, particularly in wastewater treatment and nature conservation fields. He also underlined the important role of the stakeholder dialogue in the process of implementing the action plan, recalling the stakeholder workshops on the core segments of the Plan, which were arranged in Russia in 2008 - beginning of 2009. The Russian Minister invited the participants of the Conference to attend the X Baltic Sea Day Environmental Forum to be held on 17-19 March 2009 in St. Petersburg.

The Finnish Minister of the Environment, Ms. Lehtomäki emphasized the instrumental role of HELCOM in achieving a good environmental status of the Baltic Sea as well as of cross-sectoral and cross-border co-operation in the region. She stressed that the involvement of all relevant stakeholders is vital, and that interests of business and private sectors, also on the local level, in the protection of the Baltic Sea have already been an important contribution to the implementation of the HELCOM commitments.

The Swedish State Secretary, Ms. Åsa-Britt Karlsson expressed the view that the Baltic Sea region should become an example for other marine regions for its co-operation on the protection of the marine environment, including the creation of the Baltic Sea Action Plan. Ms. Karlsson stated that Sweden, as the incoming Chair of HELCOM in 2010, would maintain the speed in implementing the agreed actions and HELCOM’s leadership in the work to restore the Baltic Sea. She underlined that HELCOM provides a good co-operation mechanism and a good knowledge basis for work to protect the Baltic Sea.

The Conference stressed the links between the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan and various existing legal frameworks and processes at global, European and national levels. In particular, the action plan was considered instrumental in implementing the various pieces of EU legislation and strategies relevant from the point of view of protecting the marine environment. The representative of the European Commission, Mr. Peter Gammeltoft, delivering his statement on behalf of the European Commissioner for the Environment Mr. Stavros Dimas, pointed out that the European Commission anticipates that the Baltic Sea will be identified as a pilot project under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and highlighted that the upcoming EU Baltic Sea Region Strategy will make significant use of the HELCOM action plan. He also stressed the importance of strengthening co-operation between EU and the Russian Federation.

Follow-up:

Eutrophication in the Baltic Sea - An integrated thematic assessment of the effects of nutrient enrichment in the Baltic Sea region, Executive Summary (BSEP 115 A, 2009): http://www.helcom.fi/stc/files/Publications/Proceedings/bsep115A.pdf.

Map: http://www.helcom.fi/press_office/news_helcom/en_GB/EUTRO_assessment/.  

Note to Editors:

The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM), is an intergovernmental organisation of the nine Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Community working to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region.

HELCOM is the governing body of the "Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area," more usually known as the Helsinki Convention.

For more information, please contact:

Mr. Nikolay Vlasov

Information Secretary

HELCOM

Tel: +358 (0)207 412 635

Fax: +358 (0)207 412 639

E-mail: nikolay.vlasov@helcom.fi